4.8.16
Litvak Yeshiva
I have been trying to think of a good argument why a Lithuanian Navardok Musar yeshiva is a good idea. But the whole day I have not been able to come up with any argument.
My major motivation for trying to argue my point is I already know that a Litvak yeshiva is an amazing experience. I would in fact call it perhaps the peak experience of my life if not for later on being in Israel and raising a family there.
But that in itself is not an argument because there are people I have encountered who had less than happy experiences in yeshiva, and not all yeshivas are created equal. But I also have not even wanted to argue for the great two yeshivas that I was in Shar Yashuv and the Mir in NY.
What motivates me to argue for Navardok is the idea of a Litvak yeshiva that places emphasis on trust in God. My reason is that I see myself in my own life that when I trusted in God everything went my way. When I stopped trusting in God and started doing השתדלות human effort, everything fell apart.
Many years later I was doing some review of some books of Ethics [Musar of Reb Israel Salanter] and I was surprised to see the that Reb Israel, and his disciples and the Musar Book Obligations of the Heart all preached the idea that if one can not make it with God, then the best advice is to help others get close to God's service.
What occurred to me was this new idea. That maybe this works for individual things. That is- if I am lacking some good character trait, and I can't seem to get it no matter how hard I try, then perhaps helping others get to that trait might help me by way of reflection?
The only modification I would make would be to add Physics and Math to the regular Musar and Gemara approach. And of course Music and survival skills.
These six things I see as pretty essential. Most of the other stuff I learned in High School today seems to have been a waste of time. And even then it did.
My major motivation for trying to argue my point is I already know that a Litvak yeshiva is an amazing experience. I would in fact call it perhaps the peak experience of my life if not for later on being in Israel and raising a family there.
But that in itself is not an argument because there are people I have encountered who had less than happy experiences in yeshiva, and not all yeshivas are created equal. But I also have not even wanted to argue for the great two yeshivas that I was in Shar Yashuv and the Mir in NY.
What motivates me to argue for Navardok is the idea of a Litvak yeshiva that places emphasis on trust in God. My reason is that I see myself in my own life that when I trusted in God everything went my way. When I stopped trusting in God and started doing השתדלות human effort, everything fell apart.
Many years later I was doing some review of some books of Ethics [Musar of Reb Israel Salanter] and I was surprised to see the that Reb Israel, and his disciples and the Musar Book Obligations of the Heart all preached the idea that if one can not make it with God, then the best advice is to help others get close to God's service.
What occurred to me was this new idea. That maybe this works for individual things. That is- if I am lacking some good character trait, and I can't seem to get it no matter how hard I try, then perhaps helping others get to that trait might help me by way of reflection?
The only modification I would make would be to add Physics and Math to the regular Musar and Gemara approach. And of course Music and survival skills.
These six things I see as pretty essential. Most of the other stuff I learned in High School today seems to have been a waste of time. And even then it did.
Not everyone is equal nor should be treated equally.
The problems with the Enlightenment were noted by Allen Bloom and he also said that the problems that arose were inevitable outcomes. His only stated solution was in regard to university education and it was specifically to get people to read Plato's Republic. That is the only solution that he proposes in his entire book. Needless to say, Plato was thinking about Sparta. [Though Allen Bloom did not mention this.] [See The Closing Of The American Mind.]
[Allen Bloom I think must have walked a middle line between the Kind of Republic in the USA based on Enlightenment principles and respect for Plato and Sparta and Hegel. He must have thought the contradictions were too great to come up with any solution and yet saw good in both systems.
I grew up in the USA when it was a highly decent and wholesome and moral society. And it was based on the Constitution. So I accepted the basic ideas of the Constitution as being right. Plus I did not like tyranny when I saw it in other places.
[Allen Bloom I think must have walked a middle line between the Kind of Republic in the USA based on Enlightenment principles and respect for Plato and Sparta and Hegel. He must have thought the contradictions were too great to come up with any solution and yet saw good in both systems.
I grew up in the USA when it was a highly decent and wholesome and moral society. And it was based on the Constitution. So I accepted the basic ideas of the Constitution as being right. Plus I did not like tyranny when I saw it in other places.
It was only recently my learning partner expressed some reservations about the basic principles of the USA that I started to wonder.
In any case I would have to agree that the whole French revolution was a very terrible thing.
My basic approach used to be this: The French Revolution was based on Rousseau and the General Will--no individual rights. Therefore it was bad. The American Revolution was based on John Locke and individual rights, Therefore good.
My basic approach used to be this: The French Revolution was based on Rousseau and the General Will--no individual rights. Therefore it was bad. The American Revolution was based on John Locke and individual rights, Therefore good.
My idea for London and Germany. Porked Earth Policy. [Instead of Scorched Earth Policy invented by General Sherman] "weaponized lard''
I think pork is a great idea. Someone should come up with creative ways to use it. Have pork spray. And Pork paved streets. Make perhaps pork dust and go up in an airplane and spread it all over Los Angeles [as in crop dusting] . And while you are at it get a Catholic priest up there with you to spread holy water all over LA and California. And especially one should porkify Muslim graveyards with pork dust.
In particular San Bernardino County.
I don't eat pork. The thing about diet is that mainly the problem is with meat products. That is pork is not as serious an issue as regular meat which needs to be slaughtered properly and also the forbidden fats need to be extracted. In any case, pork is fine to use in the above circumstances. If fact, I believe the British used it in exactly that way when they were in the Middle East and were having some trouble with Muslims. One British captain would take lard and smear it under the grave of any Muslim terrorist and then above it. and then bury a pig with the Muslim, as if to say: "No more 72 virgins for you"
Answer to me: Well, the commandments in the Pentateuch / Torah are fairly explicit, though, as to what kinds of animals, depending on whether their hooves are cloven, they chew the cud, etc. I forget the specifics, because as a Christian, I am not bound by Jewish dietary law, since the New Testament has indicated that all meats can be lawful, now, for God's people (who include both Jews and Gentiles, the Covenant having been expanded and renewed).
I any case I am not sure how easy it would be to convert lard to dust to make crop dusting possible with it.
Socially Extinct
I imagine the lard would need to be thoroughly dried or desiccated. I imagine the water constitution of lard is pretty high so it would render down to nothing. Not sure how much lard you would need to produce dust in volumes high enough to "weaponize" it.
Porked Earth Policy.
Avraham rosenblum That sounds about right. They have a lot of lard in the Ukraine. maybe it would make more sense to make a large order and ship it in to the USA instead of producing locally. Then one could do the reduction process in the States.
In particular San Bernardino County.
I don't eat pork. The thing about diet is that mainly the problem is with meat products. That is pork is not as serious an issue as regular meat which needs to be slaughtered properly and also the forbidden fats need to be extracted. In any case, pork is fine to use in the above circumstances. If fact, I believe the British used it in exactly that way when they were in the Middle East and were having some trouble with Muslims. One British captain would take lard and smear it under the grave of any Muslim terrorist and then above it. and then bury a pig with the Muslim, as if to say: "No more 72 virgins for you"
Answer to me: Well, the commandments in the Pentateuch / Torah are fairly explicit, though, as to what kinds of animals, depending on whether their hooves are cloven, they chew the cud, etc. I forget the specifics, because as a Christian, I am not bound by Jewish dietary law, since the New Testament has indicated that all meats can be lawful, now, for God's people (who include both Jews and Gentiles, the Covenant having been expanded and renewed).
The Brits weren't so wise in dealing with natives and their taboos when they ruled India; you probably are aware of what touched off the Sepoy Rebellion:
My answer: The fats covering the stomach are very very serious. Much more than pork. But as you noted most people are not bound by the dietary laws of the Pentateuch. Right about that. I heard from my learning partner that the Brits at the beginning were very apt in dealing with the natives in India. Maybe later they got sloppy and less careful. I am not sure as I did not get a chance to study the subject in detail.
I should mention here that this is one area that I think people are thinking wrong. The Laws of the Pentateuch are forever. No later revelations can nullify the commandments as Saadia Gaon and the Rambam noted.
Socially Extinct
I imagine the lard would need to be thoroughly dried or desiccated. I imagine the water constitution of lard is pretty high so it would render down to nothing. Not sure how much lard you would need to produce dust in volumes high enough to "weaponize" it.
Porked Earth Policy.
Avraham rosenblum That sounds about right. They have a lot of lard in the Ukraine. maybe it would make more sense to make a large order and ship it in to the USA instead of producing locally. Then one could do the reduction process in the States.
Also London and Germany are close to the Ukraine. They could make a large order of lard and perhaps even produce weaponized lard in sufficient quantities to spray dust it all over Germany and London and especially all existing Mosques and Muslim grave yards. They could also get a Catholic Priest at the same time to sprinkle holy water over London and Germany as an extra bonus.
Navardok and Trust in God. Start Navardok yeshivas again.
I would like to apply the dual nature of reality to the idea of trust in God. That is we have going back to the חובות לבבות [Obligations of the Heart by Bachei ben Pekuda] this contradictory thing that we are supposed to have total trust in God with no measure or limit. Yet we are supposed to do effort.
This was a famous theme in yeshivas. Not just Navardok. This came up all the time in Shar Yashuv and in the Mir in NY in reference to shiduchim [going on dates in order to find a proper marriage partner] and also parnasa (making a living).
This dilemma is also brought up in the מדרגת האדם [The Level of Man] by Joseph Horwitz itself.
What I think is there are two parallel levels of reality, objective and subjective. They are parallel but neither causes the other. Quantum Mechanics is subjective. Neils Bohr: "Nothing exists until it is measured." If you measure the electron it is a particle with a specific place and time. If you do not measure it, it is a wave.
I think trust works in the same way. If one trusts in God totally then the out reality corresponds to that trust. If one does not, then outer reality corresponds to that level.
Thus what comes out from this is that one can sit and learn Torah and not worry about shiduchim or parnasa and both will come to him. The outer reality will correspond to the inner reality.
[[I am being a little short in this essay. I really meant to say that QM is radically subjective. But some people have wanted to give up on locality instead. That is they want reality to be only objective and give up on locality. And they choose to give up on locality. But we know locality is true from experiments done daily using predictions of Special Relativity and General Relativity. Therefore only one option is left. Locality is true and nature is radically subjective. Just for one small example: GPS depends on both Special Relativity and General Relativity. It would be off by several miles if not for the fact that both SR and GR are true. I mean to say the satellites are moving faster than the observer because they are above his head going around the earth from his perspective. So their clock goes slower. But they are further out from the source of gravitation so their clock goes faster. Combine both effects and you have to adjust the clock in the satellite to compensate for both effects. If you would not adjust the clocks in the satellite they would show ones position to be miles off target every day.]
This was a famous theme in yeshivas. Not just Navardok. This came up all the time in Shar Yashuv and in the Mir in NY in reference to shiduchim [going on dates in order to find a proper marriage partner] and also parnasa (making a living).
This dilemma is also brought up in the מדרגת האדם [The Level of Man] by Joseph Horwitz itself.
What I think is there are two parallel levels of reality, objective and subjective. They are parallel but neither causes the other. Quantum Mechanics is subjective. Neils Bohr: "Nothing exists until it is measured." If you measure the electron it is a particle with a specific place and time. If you do not measure it, it is a wave.
I think trust works in the same way. If one trusts in God totally then the out reality corresponds to that trust. If one does not, then outer reality corresponds to that level.
Thus what comes out from this is that one can sit and learn Torah and not worry about shiduchim or parnasa and both will come to him. The outer reality will correspond to the inner reality.
[[I am being a little short in this essay. I really meant to say that QM is radically subjective. But some people have wanted to give up on locality instead. That is they want reality to be only objective and give up on locality. And they choose to give up on locality. But we know locality is true from experiments done daily using predictions of Special Relativity and General Relativity. Therefore only one option is left. Locality is true and nature is radically subjective. Just for one small example: GPS depends on both Special Relativity and General Relativity. It would be off by several miles if not for the fact that both SR and GR are true. I mean to say the satellites are moving faster than the observer because they are above his head going around the earth from his perspective. So their clock goes slower. But they are further out from the source of gravitation so their clock goes faster. Combine both effects and you have to adjust the clock in the satellite to compensate for both effects. If you would not adjust the clocks in the satellite they would show ones position to be miles off target every day.]
3.8.16
The Nefesh HaChaim is about service of God in a comprehensive way.
The Nefesh
HaChaim is about service of God in a comprehensive way. It is about learning Torah
and prayer. To avoid modern day idolatry and Monotheism. I do not know if there
is translation. But even if there was it would probably be Politically Correct. [This is the Musar book by a disciple of the Gra]
Monotheism is mainly the idea that God is one, not a composite, and He is not the world, and the world is not him.
I might mention that I think part of the reason the Rambam went with Aristotle was that people had been wrestling with neo platonic thought and monotheism for a thousand years. Neo Platonic thought was the default position but it was hard to get it to go along with simple Torah Monotheism. So the Rambam just jettisoned a lot of Neo Platonic thought and went straight with Aristotle.
So God would be defined as the First Cause. It makes everything amazingly simple. Nothing is godliness except God.
This is important because knowledge of this fact can save one from idolatry. And that in itself is great thing because כל הכופר בעבודה זרה כאילו מודה בכל התורה כולה anyone that denies idolatry is as if he agrees with the whole Torah. That is the Whole Torah can be more or less condensed into that one command do not do idolatry. And when one has fulfilled this then he need not seek for tikunim {other corrections} for things. For the the Torah is life and the good.
Monotheism is mainly the idea that God is one, not a composite, and He is not the world, and the world is not him.
I might mention that I think part of the reason the Rambam went with Aristotle was that people had been wrestling with neo platonic thought and monotheism for a thousand years. Neo Platonic thought was the default position but it was hard to get it to go along with simple Torah Monotheism. So the Rambam just jettisoned a lot of Neo Platonic thought and went straight with Aristotle.
So God would be defined as the First Cause. It makes everything amazingly simple. Nothing is godliness except God.
This is important because knowledge of this fact can save one from idolatry. And that in itself is great thing because כל הכופר בעבודה זרה כאילו מודה בכל התורה כולה anyone that denies idolatry is as if he agrees with the whole Torah. That is the Whole Torah can be more or less condensed into that one command do not do idolatry. And when one has fulfilled this then he need not seek for tikunim {other corrections} for things. For the the Torah is life and the good.
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